Chihlí contains several other large cities, among which Pauting, the former residence of the governor-general, and Tientsin, are the most important. The former lies about eighty miles south-west of the capital, on the Yungting River and the great road leading to Shansí. The whole department is described as a thoroughly cultivated, populous region; it is well watered, and possesses two or three small lakes.
TIENTSIN AND THE RIVER.
Tientsin is the largest port on the coast above Shanghai. Owing, however, to the shallowness of the gulf and the bar at the mouth of the Pei ho, over which at neap tide only three or four feet of water flow, the port is rendered inaccessible to large foreign vessels. Its size and importance were formerly chiefly owing to its being the terminus of the Grand Canal, where the produce and taxes for the use of the capital were brought. Mr. Gutzlaff, who visited Tientsin in 1831, described it as a bustling place, comparing the stirring life and crowds on the water and shores outside of the walls of the city with those of Liverpool. The enormous fleet of grain junks carrying rice to the capital is supplemented by a still greater number of vessels which take the food up to Tung chau. Formerly the coast trade increased the shipping at Tientsin to thousands of junks, including all which lined the river for about sixty miles. This native trade has diminished since 1861, inasmuch as steamers are gradually ousting the native vessels, no one caring to risk insurance on freight in junks. The country is not very fertile between the city and the sea, owing to the soda and nitre in the soil; but scanty crops are brought forth, and these only after much labor; one is a species of grass (Phragmites) much used in making floor-mats. Sometimes the rains cause the Pei ho and its affluents to break over their banks, at which periods their waters deposit fertilizing matter over large areas.
The approach to Tientsin from the eastward indicates its importance, and the change from the sparsely populated country lying along the banks of the Pei ho, to the dense crowds on shore and the fleets of boats, adds greatly to the vivacity of its aspect. “If fine buildings and striking localities are required to give interest to a scene,” remarks Mr. Ellis, “this has no claims; but, on the other hand, if the gradual crowding of junks till they become innumerable, a vast population, buildings, though not elegant, yet regular and peculiar, careful and successful cultivation, can supply these deficiencies, the entrance to Tientsin will not be without attractions to the traveller.”[37] The stacks of salt along the river arrest the attention of the voyager; the immense quantity of this article collected at this city is only a small portion of the amount consumed in the interior. Tientsin will gradually increase in wealth, and now perhaps contains half a million of inhabitants. Its position renders it one of the most important cities in the empire, and the key of the capital.
Near the embouchure of the river is Ta-ku, with its forts and garrison, a small town noticeable as the spot where the first interview between the Chinese and English plenipotentiaries was held, in August, 1840; and for three engagements between the British and Chinese forces in 1858, 1859, and 1860. The general aspect of the province is flat and cheerless, the soil near the coast unproductive, but, as a whole, rich and well cultivated, though the harvests are jeopardized by frequent droughts.
The port of Peking is Tung chau on the Pei ho, twelve miles from the east gate, and joined to it by an elevated stone causeway. All boats here unload their passengers and freight, which are transported in carts, wheelbarrows, or on mules and donkeys. The city of Tung chau presents a dilapidated appearance amidst all its business and trade, and its population depends on the transit of goods for their chief support. The streets are paved, the largest of them having raised footpaths on their sides. The houses indicate a prosperous community. A single pagoda towers nearly 200 feet above them, and forms a waymark for miles across the country. Tung chau is only 100 feet above the sea, from which it is distant 120 miles in a direct line; consequently, its liability to floods is a serious drawback to its permanent prosperity.
Another city of note is Siuenhwa fu, finely situated between the branches of the Great Wall. Timkowski remarks, “the crenated wall which surrounds it is thirty feet high, and puts one in mind of that of the Kremlin, and resembles those of several towns in Russia; it consists of two thin parallel brick walls, the intermediate space being filled with clay and sand. The wall is flanked with towers. We passed through three gates to enter the city: the first is covered with iron nails; at the second is the guard-house; we thence proceeded along a broad street, bordered with shops of hardware; we went through several large and small streets, which are broad and clean; but, considering its extent, the city is thinly peopled.”[38]
The department of Chahar, or Tsakhar, lies beyond the Great Wall, north and west of the province, a mountainous and thinly settled country, chiefly inhabited by Mongol shepherds who keep the flocks and herds of the Emperor.[39]
DOLON-NOR AND TOWNS IN THE NORTH.
In the north-east of their grounds lies the thriving town of Dolon-nor (i.e., Seven Lakes), or Lama-miao, of about 20,000 Chinese, founded by Kanghí. The Buddhist temples and manufactories of bells, idols, praying machines, and other religious articles found here, give it its name, and attract the Mongols, whose women array themselves in the jewelry made here. It is in latitude 42° 16′ N., about ten miles from the Shangtu River, a large branch of the river Liao, on a sandy plain, and is approached by a road winding among several lakes. North-west of Dolon-nor are the ruins of the ancient Mongolian capital of Shangtu, rendered more famous among English reading people by Coleridge’s exquisite poem—